Why You Should Be Cautious Buying Meat From A Truck, According To Reddit

If you do a lot of driving around, there's a good chance you've come across those big refrigerated trucks advertising cheap steaks. They say you can buy 20 premium ribeye steaks for just $39, and while there are plenty of reasons to avoid buying cheap meat, sometimes you just can't stop wondering if you'll be passing up on a great deal. According to Reddit users who took the plunge and tried it, buying meat off the back of a truck ends up exactly how you'd expect: With you bringing home several pounds of meat you wouldn't feed your dog.

Buyers say that truck meat is either of Select quality or ungraded, which is already a bit of a red flag. Select is the lowest quality of meat the USDA grades for retail, which means it has the least marbling, juiciness, and flavor among all grades. Ungraded meat didn't even go through the USDA quality grading process to begin with. In some cases, you can't even check if the meat has been slaughtered in USDA-certified slaughterhouses, which raises more than a few concerns on food safety.

Aside from the quality of the meat itself being questionable, there's also the possibility that whatever "bargain" you're getting from meat trucks is actually overpriced to begin with. Reddit users have pointed out that these trucks sell meat by quantity rather than by weight; those 20 ribeyes could actually be so small that you're getting just 40 ounces of beef for your money. One user also found that their steaks were injected with a brine-like solution to make them look plumper than they actually were, which makes them even more of a rip-off.

According to users on Reddit, the taste, quality, and texture of the meat can all be a little suspect. One user said that each piece of beef that their grandfather bought from a truck tasted like liver, while another compared the texture to a Scrub Daddy. The steaks, in particular, tend to be cut very thinly and are nearly half-gristle. In one extreme example, a user said that a strange artificial film started to form on the meat when it was being grilled. You can expect to find a lot of filler, meat glue, silverskin, and tendons in your purchase. Basically, truck meat ticks all the boxes when comparing the differences between cheap and expensive steaks — it tastes and feels like bottom-of-the-barrel stuff.

What makes things even worse is the buying experience. Multiple Reddit users complained about how aggressive the meat truck salesmen could get, constantly pushing you to buy more and "sweetening the deal" with free bundles of bad products. Some of the users felt like they got scammed after leaving the truck — and it's likely that a lot of them were. One user shared that they used to sell meat from a truck, buying a box for just $75 from their supplier and selling it for up to $300 afterwards.

Don't be fooled by any "money back" guarantees, either. One user reportedly tried to get their money back, but the meat truck's website provided a fake email for customer support. They ended up having to file a dispute on the charges with Amex just to get their refund.

If you're starting to regret the box of truck meat you bought before reading this article, don't worry — there are lots of ways to make something edible out of all that cheap meat. One buyer on Reddit found that the beef they bought for their in-laws tasted okay when cooked well-done; if you don't mind your meat a little on the dry side, you'll be just fine. Other users worked around their steaks' thinness by making dishes that already call for thinner strips of beef, like fajitas and cheesesteaks. Palomilla steak is another flavor-packed way to cook thin steaks.

There's also a chance that the beef is "bad" because you're just not used to it yet. Some users suspect that truck meat is cheaper because it comes from retired dairy cows instead of cattle bred specifically for meat. The meat can taste and feel different from what you know as beef because dairy cows are typically slaughtered at an older age and enjoy different diets. This means dairy cow meat isn't necessarily bad; in fact, the dairy cow-derived Holstein beef could work as an alternative to Angus because of its complex flavor profile and surprising amount of marbling. Try giving the beef another taste to check if it wasn't actually bad, and if it just wasn't what you expected.

If the meat passes even your lowest standards, then there's no real reason to let it go to waste. Check out this guide on how to make cheap steaks taste expensive for ideas on how to get more than your money's worth, as well as these tips on cooking thin cuts of steak to help them stay juicy.